LAHAINA, Hawaii — Ezra Ausar and Chad Baker-Mazara combined for 31 of USC’s second-half points to rally the Trojans to an 83-81 victory over Seton Hall on Tuesday after losing leading scorer Rodney Rice to an injury in a Maui Invitational semifinal.
Ausur finished with a season-high 25 points, hitting 15 of 19 free throws, and Baker-Mazara scored 18 for the Trojans (6-0).
Adam Clark scored 18 points, AJ Staton-McCray 17, Mike Williams III 13 and Elijah Fisher 10 for the Pirates (6-1).
Rice brought the Trojans back from a 13-point deficit to get them within four at halftime, scoring 13 points, but left early in the second half with an apparent upper arm/shoulder injury and trailing 46-44. Baker-Mazara stepped up, scoring 12 points over the next five minutes with his 3 finishing a 10-0 run and putting the Trojans ahead 63-57 with 12 minutes to go.
Staton-McCray tied the game on a three-pointer with a minute to go but Baker-Mazara put the Trojans up for good with two free throws with 27.4 seconds left. The teams traded three free throws with Jordan Marsh’s pair sealing it with 1.4 remaining.
Seton Hall turned 10 turnovers, including eight steals, to build a first-half lead. Rice scored 13 straight points, including a trio of threes, to kick off a 17-8 run with Jerry Easter II finishing it with a floater at the buzzer to trail 42-38.
LAHAINA, Hawaii — Rodney Rice scored a season-high 27 points and Chad Baker-Mazara had 11 points and eight rebounds as USC beat Boise State 70-67 on Monday in the Southwest Maui Invitational.
USC (5-0) will play on Tuesday against Seton Hall, which beat North Carolina State earlier.
Rice split two defenders at the top of the key to get into the paint for a runner while being fouled with 14.8 seconds left in the game. He made the basket and free throw to give USC the lead at 68-65.
After the teams traded free throws, Boise State inbounded it with 4.2 seconds left and quickly got down the court for Javan Buchanan’s good look from three-point range that came up just short at the buzzer.
Rice made four of USC’s 11 three-pointers, while Boise State went five for 25.
Buchanan led Boise State (4-2) with 18 points. Pearson Carmichael added 14 points and Aginaldo Neto 10.
Boise State trailed for 25-plus minutes, with its last lead at 59-58 at 2:57.
Tottenham eye a move for Everton winger Iliman Ndiaye, Chelsea are set to rival Spurs for Juventus striker Jonathan David, and Liverpool linked with £88m move for Inter’s Alessandro Bastoni.
Tottenham Hotspur have made Everton’s Senegalese winger Iliman Ndiaye, 25, a prime target, but Newcastle United, Juventus, AC Milan and Atletico Madrid are also keeping tabs on the player. (TeamTalk), external
Chelsea and Tottenham are weighing up a January move for Juventus and Canada striker Jonathan David, 25 (TuttoMercatoWeb), external
Everton could move for Midtjylland striker Franculino Dju, 21, in January but face competition from Bologna for the Guinea-Bissau international. (Sun), external
Liverpool are ready to offer 100m euros (£88m) to sign Italy international Alessandro Bastoni, 26, from Inter. (Il Giorno – in Italian), external
Real Madrid would be prepared to spend 250m euros (£220m) on Arsenal and England midfielderDeclan Rice, 26, and Paris St-Germain’s France winger Bradley Barcola, 23. (Fichajes – in Spanish), external
Levante striker Etta Eyong, 22, is being tracked by Real Madrid and Barcelona, but the Cameroon international says it would be “a dream” to one day play for Chelsea in the Premier League as he watched the team growing up. (Givemesport), external
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim may look to bolster his attack in January if 22-year-old Slovenia striker Benjamin Sesko’s knee injury proves serious, as he already faces losing Cameroon forward Bryan Mbeumo, 26, and Ivory Coast’s Amad Diallo, 23, on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations. (Mirror), external
At her players’ request, Cori Close showed up inside Pauley Pavilion five hours before tipoff. The UCLA women’s basketball coach was joined by her assistants and managers for pregame shooting at 6:30 a.m., so many players filling the court that the sessions had to be staggered.
Three days after a lackluster showing in their season opener, the Bruins felt they had something to prove in their first game at home. The additional work before facing UC Santa Barbara on Thursday reflected their commitment.
“I mean, I never have to coach this team’s work ethic,” Close said. “That is never in question. And so that’s a really fun place to be in.”
The day’s biggest gratification would come later, the third-ranked Bruins resembling an All-Star team at times during an 87-50 rout of the Gauchos that showed glimpses of the firepower they hope to fully unleash by season’s end.
Forward Gabriela Jaquez revealed one of the best long-range shooting displays of her career, making four of seven three-pointers on the way to 21 points. Point guard Kiki Rice was a constant playmaker in her return to the starting lineup while scoring 20 points, grabbing eight rebounds and distributing three assists. Shooting guard Gianna Kneepkens added another dimension to the offense with four more three-pointers and 20 points.
It was the first time the Bruins had three players score 20 or more points since four of them did it against Bellarmine in November 2023.
“There’s so many weapons that I feel like it’s hard for the defense to choose what to take away,” Kneepkens said, “so I think really what makes this team special is that on any night it could be someone’s night, so that’s a really hard thing to scout.”
The challenge for the Bruins (2-0) could be to maximize all that talent.
Close said Rice had sent her an Oklahoma City Thunder news conference in which the team talked about building rhythm with its offense by best utilizing the players who were hot on any given night.
“We’re not quite there yet,” Close said. “We’re not playing with great rhythm. … I think we just haven’t totally found that flow yet.”
UCLA guard Kiki Rice drives to the basket past UC Santa Barbara guard Zoe Shaw during the second half Thursday.
(Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)
Part of that could be pinned on Rice still rounding into form from a shoulder injury and fellow point guard Charlisse Leger-Walker (eight points, seven assists, three steals) playing in only her second game since returning from a lengthy injury layoff.
The Bruins were also without Sienna Betts (lower leg) and Timea Gardiner (knee) for a second consecutive game. Close said there remained no timetable for Betts’ return even as she continued to progress.
But Close said she liked the way her players responded after describing them as “flat all the way around” in their opener, a 24-point victory over San Diego State.
“The film session after that was not fun. Practice was not fun,” Close said. “And their willingness to say, ‘This is what we need. We need to be challenged. We didn’t meet the standard’ — I’m really impressed with their willingness to do that.”
After some lackadaisical UCLA defense in the first quarter, there was a stretch in the second quarter in which the Bruins made it difficult just to get the ball past halfcourt.
Jaquez stuck out a hand, tipping an outlet pass to herself before going in for a driving layup in which she was fouled. On the Gauchos’ next possession, Leger-Walker came up with another steal, leading to a Rice layup.
It wasn’t long before Jaquez and teammate Lauren Betts (12 points, seven rebounds, six assists) used a double team along the sideline to force another turnover.
Closing the half on a 19-2 run, the Bruins surged into a 51-26 lead. UCLA also benefited from an oddity midway through the second quarter when the Gauchos (1-1) were assessed a technical foul for having a player wearing a jersey number that didn’t correspond with the scorebook.
For UCLA, the biggest challenge might have been scheduling the game.
Close said she’s struggled to get teams to agree to play the Bruins after their Final Four run, calling every school in the state from San Luis Obispo to San Diego. Most of UCLA’s marquee nonconference games, starting with a showdown against Oklahoma on Monday in Sacramento, will be at neutral sites.
“They kept saying it’s the Lauren Betts factor and I was like, ‘No, it’s the you’re scared factor. Come on,’ ” Close said. “I actually really lose respect for people who aren’t willing to step up and play hard people.”
The Gauchos eagerly complied in part because they were Close’s alma mater and the spot where she coached for nine years.
“Thank you to them for stepping up and coming into Pauley,” Close said, “and wanting to get better at their craft and growing the game.”
For the Gauchos, given the way things went, they might be owed a Christmas card as well.
Early to rise, the Bruins also put an early end to any upset hopes.
Ivan Toney could be offered a route back to England with Tottenham, Real Madrid are keeping tabs on Declan Rice, and Chelsea enquire about Nico Paz.
Tottenham manager Thomas Frank could look to reunite with 29-year-old Al-Ahli and England striker Ivan Toney – who he managed at Brentford – in January. (Talksport), external
Real Madrid’s Brazil forward Rodrygo, 24, is also high on Tottenham’s list of attacking targets. (Teamtalk), external
Arsenal have placed a 150m euro (£132m) valuation on England midfielder Declan Rice, 26, who is admired by Real Madrid. (Fichajes – in Spanish), external
Chelsea have enquired about Como’s Nico Paz, 21, but face strong competition from Real Madrid, who could look to re-sign the Argentina playmaker. (TBR Football), external
Newcastle are “relaxed” about Sandro Tonali’s comments on his future, and will not begin formal talks about a new contract for the 25-year-old Italy midfielder until later in the season. (Mail Plus – subscription required), external
Newcastle are in talks with Netherlands defender Sven Botman, 25, over a new contract, but Sweden defender Emil Krafth, 31, is drawing interest from FC Copenhagen. (Mail Plus – subscription required), external
Barcelona are planning to open formal talks with Manchester United over a permanent deal for 28-year-old England forward Marcus Rashford. (Teamtalk), external
Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester City, Leeds, Everton, Barcelona and Real Madrid are among the other clubs interested in Mainoo. (Caught Offside), external
Borussia Dortmund are keen to re-sign England winger Jadon Sancho, 25, who is currently on loan at Aston Villa from Manchester United. (Football Insider), external
Real Madrid are hoping to sign Bayern Munich and France defender Dayot Upamecano, 27, on a free transfer when his contract expires at the end of the season. (Sky Germany – in German), external
Atletico Madrid are keeping tabs on Chelsea’s Spain defender Marc Cucurella, 27, but do not want to move for him until next summer. (Fichajes – in Spanish), external
Ajax have approached their former manager – and ex-Manchester United boss – Erik ten Hag over a return after suspending head coach John Heitinga. (Fabrizio Romano), external
